The enchanted revolver was Sullivan's flagship product these days. Thanks to it, he'd taken a tech stake in a partnership with the Stuart family and co-founded a magical weapons factory.
His share wasn't huge, but the annual dividends were more than enough to keep him living large. More importantly, it gave him real roots in America.
When people called him an "important partner" of the Magical Congress of the United States, they really meant the factory. Pretty much every combat-trained wizard in MACUSA now carried one of his enchanted handguns.
The perks were obvious: spells fired lightning-fast, silent, and wandless—perfect for catching enemies off guard. Tonks had gotten a firsthand lesson in that.
Regular models had downsides, though. The spells packed less punch than a proper wand, and you couldn't cast anything that needed sustained magic, like Wingardium Leviosa.
Use it too long, and wizards started relying on it, letting their own spellwork get rusty.
The second gift for Tonks? An enchanted phone. Sullivan showed her how it worked and added her as a contact.
Clearly, she liked the phone even more than the gun. For the rest of their time together, even when they were sitting face-to-face, she'd insist on texting him instead of talking.
Fast-forward to September 1st. Tonks had left three days earlier, and Sullivan had packed his bags. With Coal Ball in tow, he arrived at King's Cross Station, ready to board the Hogwarts Express.
The moment he got there, he spotted a big family heading his way—most of them sporting bright red hair. Who else could it be but the Weasleys?
Arthur Weasley noticed him first. He froze for a second, then hurried over, grabbed Sullivan's arms, and gave them a solid pat.
"Sullivan ! Merlin's beard, it's really you! I knew you were still out there. So good to see you again!"
During the Second Wizarding War, Arthur had been the Order of the Phoenix's logistics guy. Sullivan never officially joined, but he'd supplied them with tons of alchemical gadgets. Arthur was their main point of contact.
Sullivan clapped Arthur on the shoulder with a grin. "Arthur, you haven't changed a bit. Come on, introduce me."
Arthur spun around and waved everyone over. "This is my wife, Molly—you've heard me talk about her. Molly, meet Sullivan, the brilliant alchemist from back in the day."
Molly had obviously heard the stories. She stepped up and gave him a warm hug. "Sullivan , lovely to meet you. Arthur was always going on about you—said you were the most talented alchemist of the younger generation."
Arthur kept going. "This is my third son, Percy—fifth year. These are George and Fred, third years. Ron's the new first-year, and Ginny here starts next year."
Sullivan said hello to each of the kids. Then Arthur asked, "So, Sullivan —what brings you here?"
"Caught the Hogwarts Express, of course. Actually, I'm officially a professor now. Starting this year, I'll be teaching Muggle Studies."
"Muggle Studies? No way, Sullivan —with your skills, you should be teaching alchemy!" Arthur sounded genuinely annoyed on his behalf.
Sullivan laughed. "Hey, I remember you being obsessed with Muggle gadgets back in the day. What's this—looking down on Muggle Studies now?"
Arthur waved it off. "No, no, nothing like that! I love Muggle stuff. It's just... never mind. Doesn't matter what you teach. I'm just glad you're back."
They chatted all the way to the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. Arthur spent the walk telling his kids about Sullivan's old inventions, insisting they could go to him for help if they ever needed it at school.
Percy looked bored—he figured the Muggle Studies professor was basically useless and wouldn't be much help to someone like him.
But Fred and George? Their eyes lit up. Those two had real alchemy talent and loved making prank gadgets. The second they heard how good Sullivan was, they decided right then: they were definitely taking Muggle Studies this year.
Ron, meanwhile, hung back shyly, barely saying a word.
When they reached the platforms, Sullivan spotted a kid standing alone between 9 and 10—black messy hair, skinny, glasses, dragging a trunk with an owl cage on top.
If he wasn't Harry Potter, Sullivan would eat his wand.
Harry looked totally lost, glancing around like he was hoping someone would help.
Sullivan hung back. After Percy vanished through the wall, Harry clearly noticed something weird about the group.
He walked up to Molly. "Excuse me, ma'am—are you heading to platform 9¾? I'm a first-year too, but I can't find it anywhere."
Molly, ever the mum, ruffled his hair gently. "Don't worry, dear. This is my son Ron—he's starting this year too. Just run straight at that wall with your trolley."
"Believe you can get through. Ron'll go right after you, all right?"
A sudden breeze blew Harry's hair aside, revealing the lightning-bolt scar on his forehead.
"Oh my goodness... you're Harry Potter?" Molly stepped back, hand over her mouth.
Everyone turned to stare. Fred and George leaned in excitedly. "No way—is it really him?"
Harry looked awkward. "Yeah... it's me. Do you all know who I am?"
"Oh, sweetheart, of course I do. I held you when you were a baby—I should've recognized you sooner. You look just like your dad, except those eyes... those are your mum's."
"Can you tell me about them? My parents?" Harry asked eagerly.
"Sorry, love, not the best time—we need to get on the platform." Molly seemed to remember something and changed the subject quick.
"Hey, Molly—how about I take the two boys through?" Sullivan spoke up suddenly.
It wasn't that he was dying to buddy up with the savior of the wizarding world. No, the second Harry admitted who he was, Sullivan got a new quest ping.
Quest Name: The Boy Who Lived
Quest Details: You ran into the legendary Boy Who Lived at the station. He seems to be hiding some unknown secrets that immediately caught your interest. Try to learn about his past. Reward: +1 General Skill Point.
Sullivan wanted to tell the system: Dude, I'm not interested, and I already know all his secrets. But the system clearly disagreed.
He figured the logic was probably: hear about Harry's past from someone else's mouth to count as "learning" it.
To test that theory, Sullivan decided he'd ride in the same compartment as Harry and Ron this trip. Bonus: might make a few friends and see if it triggered the next part of that "make friends" quest chain.